Coquito de Puerto Rico

Coquito is a traditional drink from Puerto Rico, the star ingredient is coconut and it is usually a Holiday drink. I remember seeing bottles of coquito at all of our family gatherings since I was very young. I particularly remember that one of my aunts always had a bottle of coquito for adults and another for children, of course the children’s one had no alcohol. She prepared us plastic shot glasses with coquito and my cousins ​​and I pretended to be grown-ups. Now I do the same with Isabella Faith, I prepare her bottle and I give it to her in small glasses and we even toast.

Each family has its own recipe, there are even several flavors; like almonds, Nutella, pistachio among others. Some people even change the liquor, I prefer my coquito with white rum, and my favorite is Don Q Cristal (rum of Puerto Rico). But one thing is for sure Coquito is the most popular drink of the Holiday season in Puerto Rico.

I started to make coquito after I moved to Kansas City and now it has become a tradition of our family. I took a recipe that my cousin/aunt shared on social media and over the time I have adapted it to my own taste. Usually I make the first batch the day before Thanksgiving. It’s an easy recipe and it does not take long to make, now Isabella Faith helps me prepare it. I love being able to teach her my recipes, my culture, traditions and, of course, spend time with her. Here I share my recipe, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Salud!

Ingredients:

1 can of coconut milk

1 can of evaporated milk

1 can of condensed milk

1 can of coconut cream

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla

1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon

1 cinnamon stick

1 cup of Don Q Cristal (This is approximated you can add depending on your taste. You can also do the recipe without rum.)

Directions:

Mix the coconut milk, evaporated and condensed milk in the blender for 3 minutes. Add the cream of coconut, vanilla and sugar and mix for 3 more minutes. Then pour into a container and whisk in the cinnamon. Finally add the rum to taste. You can start by whipping  in a cup and then add more if you like. Before pouring the coquito into the bottle I like to put in a cinnamon stick. You can use empty rum bottles if you have some in your  house or you can buy bottles. After leaving the coquito to cool in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours you can serve it in shot glasses or regular glasses like cocktails.

Pictures in this post by Rita Cruz (My Mom) and me.